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It's automatic, the way I roll over, my arm reaching out for Charlotte.

I jolt awake, remembering, and snatch up my phone. I just got a text message – that's what woke me up.

It's her.

Charlotte's text is just letting me know she's on her way back home now, and she'll see me soon. She adds some kissy face emojis and a string of Xs and Os. I rub the sleep out of my eyes with one hand, already texting back with the other to say I can't wait to see her.

I can't.

She's coming home.

I don't even care how needy and clingy I seem, if it makes me a loser or anything like that. None of that matters, because Charlotte is on her way home, and she said yes.

Fuck, I can't believe I'm engaged.

I can't believe she drove all the way here to tell me she'd seen the video, and to tell me 'yes'. I can't believe practically everyone in the damn building came out to witness it.

Well, I guess I wanted some iconic, unforgettable proposal...

I set my phone back down and get up, kicking the sheets to the bottom of the bed and stretching, then grabbing up my glasses. I make my way to the kitchen before correcting my routine, taking a shower first instead.

Charlotte's not going to be here for a couple of hours, and it's not like any of this should be a big deal, but it is. Once I'm dressed, I head out – out for the first time in days, beyond the balcony, a shopping list ready on my phone. Maybe the way I'd planned to propose didn't go exactly the way I wanted it to, but I still want to make this special for her, as much as I can. I end up filling the cart with a few extras: some chocolate chip cookies fresh from the bakery I know she likes, smoked salmon, eggs and an avocado so I can make her a fancy breakfast tomorrow... I stop by the booze aisle, reaching for a bottle of prosecco before catching myself, and grabbing a Möet and Chandon, with wild abandon.

It's not like extra-special champagne can spoil the surprise now, right?

It's a long walk home, and I probably shouldn't have gone so overboard. It's hot out today, and between that, the weight of the shopping, and the fact that I'm not exactly what you'd call athletically inclined, I need another shower by the time I get back.

I spend some time trying to tame my hair, even though it's a fairly useless effort.

There's a bruise on my forehead where I fell off the sofa the other night. That's going to look great in the selfies I know Charlotte will want to take, I think, grimacing.

I raid the makeup she left behind, experimenting with dabbing on some concealer. I accidentally use some highlighter the first time though, ending up with a sparkly forehead.

"Maddox, you look like a fucking unicorn," I mutter at myself in the mirror, turning at an angle to see the bump on my head, now shining in the daylight. I scrub it off and try again – a little more successful this time.

I potter around the flat, but I already tidied and cleaned it up yesterday. There's not really anything else to do.

I check on Find My Friends, but Charlotte's still a while away.

Agitated, I sit on the sofa, but I can't even focus on Animal Crossing for more than five minutes. My knees are bouncing and I feel sick with excitement. I go through some of my notifications – the proposal video is still gaining traction.

Charlotte giggled over the phone to me yesterday when I apologised and said I'd take it down. "Don't be silly! People love it. It's really cute, Ethan. I don't mind if you want to leave it up."

I move to my computer, pulling up the Creator Studio page on YouTube, hovering over the bin icon to delete it.

I can still hear Charlotte's giggle echoing in my ears, see the way she grinned up at me from the grass outside.

The only reason I was so devastated the video got out was because it ruined all my kinda-carefully laid proposal plans. And Charlotte's right – people do seem to really love it. I've noticed maybe, like, a couple hundred or so trolls or mean comments – which is basically nothing, in the context of the number of views and comments the video has.

I move the mouse away from the 'delete' button, and turn on my camera instead.

I clear my throat, smooth back my hair, and start talking.

***

"Hey, guys. It's me – Ethan. Uh, some of you probably don't know me that well, and have never heard of my channel before, but... Well, I guess you know me pretty damn well by this point, after watching me lay my soul bare over the girl I love. If you're new here: thanks! It's great to have you! I'll link a couple of my most popular playlists down in the description if you want to check those out, and if you like it, be sure to subscribe and find me on Twitch for more.

"But, uh..." I pause here, rubbing the back of my neck and giving an awkward laugh before looking up at the camera again. "I guess I just wanted to address that last video. Obviously, it wasn't what I was planning to upload. My girlfriend, Charlotte, got stuck staying with her parents all week because our building was locked down for this whole virus sitch, and in case it wasn't completely bloody obvious in my video, I really missed her.

"I'm not... not good with words, usually, but talking to a camera is something I'm pretty comfortable with." My hands flap back and forth between me and the screen, as if to demonstrate. "I figured if I sat there and talked at my camera long enough, I'd know what I wanted to say to her when I proposed. Except, obviously, that plan went all to shit, because I accidentally uploaded the wrong video. And I know some people think it was some kind of publicity stunt, or just a bid to go viral, or whatever, but I can promise you – I was mortified. I was half asleep – and a little tipsy – when I uploaded the video, and it was a total accident.

"A happy accident, though, because... Well, I know a lot of you guys are wondering...

"She said yes! So, uh, yeah. Thanks for, uh, watching, and for all the well wishes. I really appreciate it – and so does Charlotte. It's really sweet of you guys. But hey, that's it from me for now! And sorry this isn't my usual kind of video either, but I figured after the last one, I'd better update you all. And," I add finally, clasping my hands lightly together, my index fingers pointing together towards the camera while the rest of my fingers fold over each other, "regular programming will resume on my channel from here on out. I don't expect to turn into a wedding planning channel, but, hey, who am I kidding? I'll probably be so damn excited I'll be telling you guys everything anyway.

"Thanks for watching, I've been Ethan Maddox, and you've been awesome."

***

I sit back, and hit upload before I can second-guess myself. It's not even edited to cut out the 'um's or the long pauses, and the audio and lighting and colour probably isn't too great either, but I can't bring myself to care in the way I usually do.

It's really not what I'd normally post, but if I'm going to leave the 'Dear Charlotte' video up (even if just for a little while), I'd better follow up and address it.

Especially since the whole internet is clamouring to know what happened.

I title the video 'She said yes', and aside from the default message pushing viewers to subscribe, and links to some of my playlists, I leave the description blank.

Jack messages me within five minutes of the video going live – to tell me I'm a sap, and good God that was sickly-sweet, and he loves me and he's waiting for an equally great viral video for me to ask him to be my best man.

I laugh at the message, but now he's mentioned it – that might actually be a really fun idea.

And I mean, obviously, he's going to be my best man. I'll bet Charlotte's already asked Laura to be her maid of honour. I get a text from Danny, Jack's brother, a few minutes later – berating me for 'doing too good a job' and setting unrealistic expectations for him and his new girlfriend.

He'd sent me and Jack a video he managed to get, of Charlotte showing up yesterday to shout up to me – I'd had no idea Danny was in the building, or that his new girlfriend lived here. We weren't that close, but close enough he'd probably end up on the stag do. I appreciated that he'd taken the video and not just put it online somewhere.

I definitely had no plans to upload that one. That was just for me and Charlotte.

Speaking of...

I check Find My Friends again.

She's only a few minutes away.

I jump back out of my seat, pacing the flat to burn off my nervous energy. I go out onto the balcony, leaning over it and bouncing on the balls of my feet, watching her little dot move closer and closer on the map, and then finally –

"Oi!" I shout down from the balcony, spotting a shock of ginger hair and a familiar bag. "Future Mrs Maddox!"

Charlotte's head immediately twists in my direction, and her face splits into a smile.

And just like that, I'm gone, clattering out of the flat and not even wearing a pair of socks, barrelling down the stairs and almost falling flat on my face again, throwing the door open just as Charlotte gets outside.

She looks startled to see me, but I only catch the look on her face for a split second before I've wrapped her in my arms, pulling her flush against me, and I'm kissing her, and it feels so goddamn good to kiss her, and I'm not sure I've ever been this in love with her.

Charlotte lets out a startled squeak against my lips, but it quickly turns into a giggle. Her bag hits the floor and her arms wrap around my neck, like she can pull herself even closer to me. Her lips curve into a smile as she kisses me.

"Hey, you," she murmurs.

"God, I missed you."

She giggles again as she kisses me once more. "You don't say?"

We break apart for air when someone clears their throat.

It's Mr Harris, the caretaker, raising an eyebrow at us and trying not to look too smiley at our soppy display.

"You kids wanna take that inside? Or further outside? Six feet, remember? You're blocking the way."

We both look around and see an older couple dithering on the stairs, not sure if they're allowed to scoot past us. I give them a sheepish smile while Charlotte doesn't even blush; I pick up her bag and we stand to the side to let them out, before going inside to our own flat. I wrap an arm around her waist, like I can't get enough of her – because, well, I can't.

"Hang on," I tell her, stopping her as she gets to our door. I might not be athletically inclined, but I can manage to scoop her up, bridal-style, to carry her two feet through the door before setting her back down. Charlotte can't stop laughing, or smiling, and I love it. I love her, so much.

"Watch it, or I'm going to start expecting this sort of treatment all the time."

"Only on weekends," I joke back, and then she's folding herself into my arms to kiss me again, and I have never been so happy to screw something up so badly in my life.

And there it is - Lockdown on London Lane!

(Admittedly, I am sort of toying with the idea of doing another part, maybe a month or so down the line, just to check back in on everyone... This project has been so much fun, and I'm not sure if I'm ready to let go of these characters just yet... I'm not making any promises, of course, but if you guys would like to see a Part 7 like that, in the same style as this Part 6 has been, let me know, and I'll give it some serious thought over the next couple of weeks!)

Thank you, though, so much, for all your support. I've had an absolutely brilliant time reading all of your comments, and it's been so much fun to post on Wattpad again! I'm really glad so many of you have enjoyed this story. Let me know who your favourites have been!

And keep an eye out - I might have something else very special to share with you guys later this summer here on Wattpad...

In the meantime, make sure to follow me on social media (handles in the image above) and on YouTube, where I'm vlogging 1-2 times per week over the summer talking all things Kissing Booth, productivity, and writing advice! 

Maybe see you guys again soon, for more Lockdown on London Lane. But if not - hey, it's been a blast! x